Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-mkpzs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T05:58:37.910Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Integrating morphological and contextual cues in lexical inferencing of Chinese fourth graders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 July 2022

Huan Zhang Open the ORCID record for Huan Zhang [Opens in a new window] ,
Jie Zhang Open the ORCID record for Jie Zhang [Opens in a new window] ,
Chunxiang Han ,
Xuelian Zhou ,
Yongqiang Su Open the ORCID record for Yongqiang Su [Opens in a new window]  and
Hong Li Open the ORCID record for Hong Li [Opens in a new window]
Huan Zhang
Affiliation:
Department of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
Jie Zhang
Affiliation:
Department of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
Chunxiang Han
Affiliation:
Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Institute of Children’s Reading and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
Xuelian Zhou
Affiliation:
Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Institute of Children’s Reading and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
Yongqiang Su
Affiliation:
Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Institute of Children’s Reading and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
Hong Li*
Affiliation:
Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Institute of Children’s Reading and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
*
*Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The study investigated the strategies used by Chinese students in inferring meanings of unfamiliar words and the influential factors of successful use of different lexical inferencing strategies. A total of 104 fourth graders inferred 36 unfamiliar semitransparent compound words in three conditions: word in isolation, contextual information only, and both word and context. Results revealed that students were more likely to obtain the correct meaning of words when both morphological information and contextual information were available. The likelihood of using a morpheme-based or context-based lexical inferencing strategy was strongly influenced by the presentation condition of target words and precursors. Students with higher vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension ability were more sensitive to morphological and contextual information and were able to synthesize multiple sources of information, whereas children with lower vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension ability showed difficulties in integration and tended to overly rely on morphological information. The findings reveal the interactions between available source information and individual differences in vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension in predicting lexical inferencing and have implications for vocabulary and reading instruction.

Keywords

Lexical inferencingvocabulary knowledgereading comprehensionChinese learners
Type
Original Article
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 43 , Issue 4 , July 2022 , pp. 805 - 827
Check for updates
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bates, D., Maechler, M., Bolker, B., Walker, S., Christensen, R. H. B., Singmann, H., … Green, P. (2021). lme4: Linear Mixed-Effects Models using ‘Eigen’ and S4. R package version, 1.1–27.1. Retrieved from https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lme4 Google Scholar
Baumann, J. F., Edwards, E. C., Font, G., Tereshinski, C. A., Kame’enui, E. J., & Olejnik, S. (2002). Teaching morphemic and contextual analysis to fifth-grade students. Reading Research Quarterly, 37(2), 150–176.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G., & Kucan, L. (2002). Bringing words to life: Robust vocabulary instruction. New York: The Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Bowers, P. N., & Kirby, J. R. (2010). Effects of morphological instruction on vocabulary acquisition. Reading & Writing, 23(5), 515–537.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brusnighan, S. M., & Folk, J. R. (2012). Combining contextual and morphemic cues is beneficial during incidental vocabulary acquisition: Semantic transparency in novel compound word processing. Reading Research Quarterly, 47(2), 172–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cain, K., Oakhill, J., & Lemmon, K. (2004). Individual differences in the inference of word meanings from context: The influence of reading comprehension, vocabulary knowledge, and memory capacity. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96(4), 671.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlisle, J. F. (2000). Awareness of the structure and meaning of morphologically complex words: Impact on reading. Reading & Writing, 12(3), 169–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, T. (2019). The role of morphological awareness in L2 Chinese lexical inference: From a perspective of word semantic transparency. Reading & Writing, 32(5), 1275–1293.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chen, T., Koda, K., & Wiener, S. (2020). Word-meaning inference in L2 Chinese: An interactive effect of learners’ linguistic knowledge and words’ semantic transparency. Reading & Writing, 33(10), 2639–2660.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crosson, A. C., & McKeown, M. G. (2016). Middle school learners’ use of Latin roots to infer the meaning of unfamiliar words. Cognition and Instruction, 34(2), 148–171.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Deacon, S. H., Tong, X., & Francis, K. (2017). The relationship of morphological analysis and morphological decoding to reading comprehension. Journal of Research in Reading, 40(1), 1–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Department of Language Information Management of Ministry of Education of the PRC. (2019). 义务教育常用词表 [Word Frequency List in Compulsory Education]. Beijing: The Commercial Press.Google Scholar
Dressler, C., Carlo, M. S., Snow, C. E., August, D., & White, C. E. (2011). Spanish-speaking students’ use of cognate knowledge to infer the meaning of English words. Bilingualism, 14(2), 243.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fang, Y., & Jiang, X. (2012). 外国学生利用语境和构词法猜测汉语词义的个体差异研究 [A study on individual differences of L2 Chinese learners in inferring novel word meanings by integrating information from context and word formation]. Chinese Teaching in the World, 3, 367–378.Google Scholar
Goodwin, A. P., & Ahn, S. (2013). A meta-analysis of morphological interventions in English: Effects on literacy outcomes for school-age children. Scientific Studies of Reading, 17(4), 257–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haastrup, K. (1991). Lexical inferencing procedures or talking about words. Tuĵbingen: Gunter Narr Verlag.Google Scholar
Hamada, M. (2014). The role of morphological and contextual information in L2 lexical inference. The Modern Language Journal, 98(4), 992–1005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jenkins, J. R., Stein, M. L., & Wysocki, K. (1984). Learning vocabulary through reading. American Educational Research Journal, 21(4), 767–787.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Joseph, H., & Nation, K. (2018). Examining incidental word learning during reading in children: The role of context. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 166, 190–211.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ke, S., & Koda, K. (2019). Is vocabulary knowledge sufficient for word-meaning inference? an investigation of the role of morphological awareness in adult L2 learners of Chinese. Applied Linguistics, 40(3), 456–477.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ku, Y., & Anderson, R. C. (2003). Development of morphological awareness in Chinese and English. Reading & Writing, 16(5), 399–422.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kuznetsova, A., Brockhoff, P. B., & Christensen, R. H. B. (2020). lmerTest: Tests in Linear Mixed Effects Models. R package version, 3.1-3. Retrieved from https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lmerTest Google Scholar
Lesaux, N. K., & Kieffer, M. J. (2010). Exploring sources of reading comprehension difficulties among language minority learners and their classmates in early adolescence. American Educational Research Journal, 47(3), 596–632.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Li, J. (2011). ⟪现代汉语词典⟫的语义透明度考察. [A quantification analysis of the transparency of lexical meaning of Modern Chinese Dictionary]. Chinese Linguistics, 35(3), 54–62.Google Scholar
Li, H., Dronjic, V., Chen, X. I., Li, Y., Cheng, Y., & Wu, X. (2017). Morphological awareness as a function of semantics, phonology, and orthography and as a predictor of reading comprehension in Chinese. Journal of Child Language, 44(5), 1218–1247.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
MacKay, E. J., Levesque, K., & Deacon, S. H. (2017). Unexpected poor comprehenders: An investigation of multiple aspects of morphological awareness: Poor comprehenders and morphological awareness. Journal of Research in Reading, 40(2), 125–138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCutchen, D., & Logan, B. (2011). Inside incidental word learning: Children’s strategic use of morphological information to infer word meanings. Reading Research Quarterly, 46(4), 334–349.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. (2021). Compulsory Education Chinese Curriculum Standard: 2021 version. [义务教育语文课程标准]. Beijing: Beijing Normal University Press.Google Scholar
Mori, Y., & Nagy, W. (1999). Integration of information from context and word elements in interpreting novel kanji compounds. Reading Research Quarterly, 34(1), 80–101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nagy, W. E., Anderson, R. C., & Herman, P. A. (1987). Learning word meanings from context during normal reading. American Educational Research Journal, 24(2), 237–270.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nassaji, H. (2003). L2 vocabulary learning from context: Strategies, knowledge sources, and their relationship with success in L2 lexical inferencing. TESOL Quarterly, 37(4), 645–670.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ouellette, G. P. (2006). What’s meaning got to do with it: The role of vocabulary in word reading and reading comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98(3), 554–566.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ouellette, G., & Beers, A. (2010). A not-so-simple view of reading: How oral vocabulary and visual-word recognition complicate the story. Reading & Writing, 23(2), 189–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perfetti, C., & Stafura, J. (2014). Word knowledge in a theory of reading comprehension. Scientific Studies of Reading, 18(1), 22–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
R Development Core Team. (2016). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R foundation for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria. Retrieved from http://www.R-project.org Google Scholar
Ram, G., Marinellie, S. A., Benigno, J., & McCarthy, J. (2013). Morphological analysis in context versus isolation: Use of a dynamic assessment task with school-age children. Language, Speech & Hearing Services in Schools, 44(1), 32–47.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Raudszus, H., Segers, P. C. J., & Verhoeven, L. T. W. (2021). Use of morphological and contextual cues in children’s lexical inferencing in L1 and L2. Reading & Writing, 34(6), 1513–1538.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ricketts, J., Bishop, D. V., Pimperton, H., & Nation, K. (2011). The role of self-teaching in learning orthographic and semantic aspects of new words. Scientific Studies of Reading, 15(1), 47–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shu, H., Anderson, R. C., & Zhang, H. (1995). Incidental learning of word meanings while reading: A Chinese and American cross-cultural study. Reading Research Quarterly, 30(1), 76–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Su, M., Peyre, H., Song, S., McBride, C., Tardif, T., Li, H., Zhang, Y., Liang, W., Zhang, Z., Ramus, F. and Shu, H. (2017). The influence of early linguistic skills and family factors on literacy acquisition in Chinese children: Follow-up from age 3 to age 11. Learning and Instruction, 49(1): 54–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tong, X., McBride, C., Shu, H., & Ho, C. S. (2018). Reading comprehension difficulties in Chinese–English bilingual children. Dyslexia, 24(1), 59–83.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wickham, H., Chang, W., Henry, L., Pedersen, T. L., Takahashi, K., Wilke, C.,… Dunnington, D. (2021). ggplot2: Create Elegant Data Visualisations Using the Grammar of Graphics. R package version, 3.3.5. Retrieved from https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=ggplot2 Google Scholar
Xu, X., Li, J., & Guo, S. (2021). Age of acquisition ratings for 19,716 simplified Chinese words. Behavior Research Methods, 53(2), 558–573. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-020-01455-8 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Xu, Y., & Zhang, J. (2020). Chinese compound word inference through context and word-internal cues. Language Teaching Research, 26(3), 308–332.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, H. (2015). Morphological awareness in vocabulary acquisition among Chinese-speaking children: Testing partial mediation via lexical inference ability. Reading Research Quarterly, 50(1), 129–142.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, D., & Koda, K. (2012). Contribution of morphological awareness and lexical inferencing ability to L2 vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension among advanced EFL learners: Testing direct and indirect effects. Reading & Writing, 25(5), 1195–1216.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, H., & Koda, K. (2018). Vocabulary knowledge and morphological awareness in Chinese as a heritage language (CHL) reading comprehension ability. Reading and Writing, 31(1), 53–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, J., & Shulley, L. (2017). Poor comprehenders in English-only and English language learners: Influence of morphological analysis during incidental word learning: Poor comprehenders. Journal of Research in Reading, 40(2), 169–183.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, J., Lin, T., Liu, Y., & Nagy, W. E. (2020). Morphological awareness and reading comprehension: Differential mediation mechanisms in native English speakers, fluent English learners, and limited English learners. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 199, 104915.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed